The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-10-25
A MOST SERIOUS SPLIT.
Rebellion in the Ranks of
Knights of Labor.
Z EoRGANIzING THE ORDER
A Circular Reciting the Rottenness,
and Rule-aDd-Ruin Policy OF
the minneapolis Wing.
a Split Among the knights.

CHICAGO, October 23.-DtSsenters from
tle action taken at the Minneapolis
convention have declared open war
With the executive board of the K. of
Il. and have issued their declaration for
independence. On taeir return from
the convention about thirty five
delegates, representing thirteen States.
stopped In Chicago and deter
ganization of the order. They
elected a provisional committee OF
five members, of which Charles Lieb
was made secretary. A long communi-
cation was drafted in Secretary Lieb s
othce, to-day, and will be for warded to-
morrow in circular form to Knights of
Labor all over the country. The circu
lar starts out as follows: To the rank
and file of the Order of Knigh s of La
Dor: The indignant usurpation Of
power, the gross violation of laws OF
the Order Gy those high in authority
with those whose loyalty to the prese nt
ring has been gained by the pickIngs
they received as a reward for their ser
vices, incensed at fawning sycophants
who crawl on their knees in slaVish
submission to the most corrupt, most
hypocritical, most autocratic and tyran-
meal clique that has ever controlled any
labor Organization. We, therefore,
affirm the motto of our order, that
When bad men com bine the good must
associate, else they will fall one by
one. an unpitied class in contemplate
struggle We assert that the hour has
come when as honest men and women
We declare ourselves independent of
those who have abused the confidence
reposed N them by our order. Our
duty 10 workingmen and women de
mands that we at once reorganize
the order of the knights of Labor
On basis which will secure
the autonomy of trades and tie
sovereignty of districts, IN all pertain
ing TO their trade and local affairs. AMI
TO prevent it from being used in future
as a machine to fill the Golfers of
designing and INSCRIPTIONS men, as it
is now by those in power. The cir
cular then goes on at great length
to give the reasons which have
compelled this serious action on
our part" They charge that
the general offices have become
for men whose chief
aim is to benefit self pecuniarily and
otherwise, that there has been for more
than q year conspiracy for the pur-
pose of holding salaried positions in
and under the general assembly; that
this conspiracy had used the secret
channels and funds of the order
to manufacture sentiment from
certain members and against others;
that organizers commissions have
been refused to members known 20
disagree with the methods of the ring;
~ i -. -,
been suspended, or expelled, for oppOs
ing the policy of the conspirators: that
the records OF the general Office have
been fixed So IS to rule out or admit, as
the case might be, general as
thousands of dollars OF the orders
funds have been illegally expended,
frequently against the earnest protests
of honest and law-abiding members;
that honest men devoted to the cause of
labor have been made scapegoats of
laundering high officials and driven in
disgrace from the movement. Efforts
mades by assemblies to better their
condition have been stlanfiled by the
ring: the boycott has been used to in
jure labor, for the sole purpose of
:" downing Workingmen and women.
who could not be used by
the conspirators. The constitu-
ton has been altered in an illegal
manner measures inimical; to the order
at large have been railroaded into
law war has been waged by the ad
mi Iistrstion rings gsinst trades unions
and trades districts in spite of the
order oblig alton to "extend helping
hand to all branches of honest trade"
Nearly every important strike or lock-
out in which general officers interfered
have been lost as a result of this
aud stupidity, arbitrary pol
icy on the part of the administration;
Tue membership of the order has de-
erased 218,000 members in one year.
In spite of this decrease they have
increased the annual expenditures
of the general offices TO $500,000. In
the general assembly arguments were
met by bunoombe, the gag law was re-
duced to a system, outrageous deci-
sions rendered appeals useless, and
protests were ignored. all for the pur
pose of covering up the rsscality of
those in power. The circular requests
al local aud district assemblies in &C
cord with the declaration desiring in
formation to address Secretary Lieb.
S-~-$--